Poulenc: Stabat Mater, Gloria, Litanies à la Vierge Noir
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Poulenc: Stabat Mater, Gloria, Litanies à la Vierge Noir Patricia Petibon (soprano), Chœur de l'Orchestre de Paris, Orchestre de Paris/Paavo Järvi (DG)
Poulenc's effervescent, late Gloria
is an indestructible work. I've never come across a bad recorded
performance, with the best ones revelling in Poulenc's garish colours
and offhand tonal shifts. Paavo Järvi's new, handsomely recorded version
scores in having Patricia Petibon as solo soprano. Her diction is
impeccable, and her cool, vibrato-light sound suits Poulenc's melodic
contours to perfection; I'm still swooning over those perfectly realised
upward swoops in the fifth movement. Järvi's direction in the Gloria
is initially less convincing. The brassy opening fanfares are a little
muted, as if he's anxious to dispel any suggestion of vulgarity.
Happily, he does warm up as the work progresses, revelling in the
score's references to Prokofiev and Stravinsky, and the final movement
is terrific. Impeccably blended choral singing too, notably in the
closing minutes.
Poulenc's weightier Stabat Mater, its composition prompted by the death of a close friend, is more successful in Järvi's hands. Quis est homo
erupts with terror, and how marvellous to actually hear those peculiar
horn and harp flurries halfway through the movement. The tiny,
irreverent Eia, Mater gleams, and the hints of plainchant at the opening of the Sancta Mater
are swiftly followed by distinctly bluesy harmonies. Järvi captures the
movement's breath-like swell beautifully and he also nails the Baroque
rhythms at the start of the Fac ut portem. Petibon's
contributions are nicely judged, and the work's close is suitably
abrupt. A great recorded performance. And there's also the exquisite,
chilly Litanies à la Vierge Noir in Poulenc's rarely-heard version for strings and timpani. It's better than the organ original.
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